The Sin of “Self-Righteousness”

Self righteousness involves making judgments about what other people need to do, based on decisions we made for ourselves. Because something was good for us, we righteously believe others need it too. Our good becomes another man’s duty! I quite smoking, therefore all smokers should be forced, intimidated and coerced into becoming like me. I quit eating meat so those who eat meat are a danger to society and cruel to animals. I found a church that seems to agree with everything I want to believe, so all other churches are wrong! The examples of self righteousness are endless. The command from Jesus is ‘judge not lest you be judged’ and the Apostle Paul said this in Romans 2:1

Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.

Self righteousness is a huge block to the filling of the Holy Spirit. The work of the Spirit is to judge us and lead us into truth. If we are involved in judging others this vital work of the Spirit can’t be performed because we believe we have become righteous in our own thinking and in our own flesh. The Holy Spirit urges us and convicts us to change and to be humble and meek in attitude. A self righteous person resists change and resists information that conflicts with what they believe. The self righteous believe the are a source of truth unto themselves and they have all the answers they need for themselves and for everybody else as well.